This Week I are mostly reading (contd)

Fathom

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch.

Callan57

Finished Days Without End .... absolutely superb!

Next is Nighmare In Berlin by Hans Fallada

Xofpod

eire4 wrote: »

How do you like Denis Lehane? I have not read any of his books but I have one on my to read shelf.

I'm definitely a fan. He has a nice, unflashy style and a very dark sensibility. The detective books are good (Gone Baby Gone, etc.) and I've just started the historical series,the Given Day being the first of a trilogy. As a good starting point I'd recommend The Drop; a quality short read that will let you know if he's your kind of thing...

eire4

Xofpod wrote: »

I'm definitely a fan. He has a nice, unflashy style and a very dark sensibility. The detective books are good (Gone Baby Gone, etc.) and I've just started the historical series,the Given Day being the first of a trilogy. As a good starting point I'd recommend The Drop; a quality short read that will let you know if he's your kind of thing...

Thanks for that I appreciate it. I have on my to read shelf 2 of his books Moonlight Mile and Shutter island so I will see how I like those.

bobbyss

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

The Unknown Ajax by Georgette Heyer

First book in a while I've been able to get properly in to. Pretty light read, like Jane Austen light, in a nice way.

I have some of her books but all unread so so far due to lack of time. Stephen Fry thinks the world of her. Very underrated.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

bobbyss wrote: »

I have some of her books but all unread so so far due to lack of time. Stephen Fry thinks the world of her. Very underrated.

It was pretty entertaining. They're all set in the 1800's or thereabouts, but were written in the 50's.... I think? Maybe the 50's equivalent of a "holiday read".

Callan57

The Incredible Life of Jonathan Doe by Carol Coffey

Birneybau

Trying to get into 'Permutation City' by Greg Egan, tough going so far.

Also have latest Rebus book by Ian Rankin from when I need a rest from the above.

Fathom

The Boys in the Boat
by Daniel James Brown

Ipso

eire4 wrote: »

Thanks for that I appreciate it. I have on my to read shelf 2 of his books Moonlight Mile and Shutter island so I will see how I like those.

Moonlight Mile is a follow up to Gone, Baby Gone. I think it's also the 5th or 6th in the overall series.

Daisy78

Christmas Days by Jeanette Winterson.

Xofpod

Ipso wrote: »

Moonlight Mile is a follow up to Gone, Baby Gone. I think it's also the 5th or 6th in the overall series.

Also works fine as a standalone though. I think it was the first of his books that I read.

eire4

Ipso wrote: »

Moonlight Mile is a follow up to Gone, Baby Gone. I think it's also the 5th or 6th in the overall series.

Interesting I did not know that. I think I picked up the book on the cheap somewhere and never paid much attention other then I had been meaning to give Denis Lehane a try as I had heard good things. I will give Shutter island a go first then.

eire4

Xofpod wrote: »

Also works fine as a standalone though. I think it was the first of his books that I read.

Thanks again good to know. I will have a go with Shutter Island and then hit Moonlight Mile if I like the first one.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

The North Pole by Roald Amundsen.

Translated from Norwegian it's a first hand account of Amundsen's successful expedition to be the first reach the South Pole. Purely coincidence that today happens to be the 105th anniversary of them reaching the pole. The first couple of chapters are just Amundsen explaining the meticulous prep he did before setting off. There's quite a few times where he mentions the contrast between his preparation and Scott's and already it's not hard to see why Amundsen was successful and Scott failed miserably. He gets a few very polite digs in at Scott too.

Very interesting read so far.

Fathom

Midnight’s Children
by Salman Rushdie

bobbyss

Just started Daniel Deronda by George Eliot. A large book with, I noticed, reasonably short chapters.

kirk buttercup

Ipso wrote:

Moonlight Mile is a follow up to Gone, Baby Gone. I think it's also the 5th or 6th in the overall series.

It's also the worst one in the whole series in my opinion. The rest are really good

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

bobbyss wrote: »

Just started Daniel Deronda by George Eliot. A large book with, I noticed, reasonably short chapters.

BBC did an adaptation of that a few years ago. It's worth a look when you finish reading it. Think it's on Netflix at the moment.

Joe_ Public

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

The North Pole by Roald Amundsen.

Translated from Norwegian it's a first hand account of Amundsen's successful expedition to be the first reach the South Pole. Purely coincidence that today happens to be the 105th anniversary of them reaching the pole. The first couple of chapters are just Amundsen explaining the meticulous prep he did before setting off. There's quite a few times where he mentions the contrast between his preparation and Scott's and already it's not hard to see why Amundsen was successful and Scott failed miserably. He gets a few very polite digs in at Scott too.

Very interesting read so far.

Is my memory playing tricks or did Scott's wife have an affair with Amundsen or one of his advisers?

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Joe_ Public wrote: »

Is my memory playing tricks or did Scott's wife have an affair with Amundsen or one of his advisers?

:eek:

I have no idea! I doubt that'll be in the book. Intriguing.

EDIT: According to Wikipedia

In 1910, she accompanied her husband to New Zealand to see him off on his journey to the South Pole. A biographer of the Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen has suggested that, in her husband's absence, she began a brief affair with Nansen, the mentor of Scott's rival Amundsen.

I guess Polar explorers were the boy bands of the early 1900s.

bobbyss

I think on Eggheads BBC 2 quiz yesterday, one of the eggheads (surprisingly) didn't know Scott's rather strange middle name.

Also a great read, but can't remember the title, was an account of the first trek to central Australia by two men one of whom was an Irishman called Burke I think (and Willis?).

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

bobbyss wrote: »

I think on Eggheads BBC 2 quiz yesterday, one of the eggheads (surprisingly) didn't know Scott's rather strange middle name.

Also a great read, but can't remember the title, was an account of the first trek to central Australia by two men one of whom was an Irishman called Burke I think (and Willis?).

Have developed an interest in exploration recently, no idea why, I must have a look for this one.

Joe_ Public

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

Have developed an interest in exploration recently, no idea why, I must have a look for this one.

I love them too and the same with climbing books, replete with the obligatory disaster, i guess it's the idea of the noble sacrifice or the powerlessness of man confronted with the extremes of nature. Something along those lines anyway.

Not long ago read a book by Hampton Sides called "In the Kingdom of Ice" about a US expedition in the mid 19th century. I mostly prefer reading about the Scott/Shackleton era, but Sides is a good writer and was gripped by the story.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Joe_ Public wrote: »

I love them too and the same with climbing books, replete with the obligatory disaster, i guess it's the idea of the noble sacrifice or the powerlessness of man confronted with the extremes of nature. Something along those lines anyway.

Not long ago read a book by Hampton Sides called "In the Kingdom of Ice" about a US expedition in the mid 19th century. I mostly prefer reading about the Scott/Shackleton era, but Sides is a good writer and was gripped by the story.

I quite like the Polar stuff because it feels like the last time something on Earth was still undiscovered. It's hard to imagine being the first human eyes to see a place or the first people to set foot on a piece of land. I can see most places on earth now without getting out of bed, just fire up old Google Street View and I'm off.

bobbyss

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

Have developed an interest in exploration recently, no idea why, I must have a look for this one.

Check out Dr Livingstone's life. But maybe more engaging than the dour Scot is Tim Jeal's (I think) two part life of Stanley. He was Welsh, a journalist, went to America, zealously tracked down the great man. There is much more to him than his famous one liner.

Joe_ Public

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

I quite like the Polar stuff because it feels like the last time something on Earth was still undiscovered. It's hard to imagine being the first human eyes to see a place or the first people to set foot on a piece of land. I can see most places on earth now without getting out of bed, just fire up old Google Street View and I'm off.

Yeah, that's it. It feels properly heroic, whether they were doing it for the glory of the empire or out of personal vanity, whereas nowadays when some guy announces he's going to be the first to climb Everest in fancy dress or walk to the South Pole wearing sandals, it just feels like a gimmick. Doesn't feel like there are any more frontiers to explore on the planet.

Callan57

Main Street by Sinclair Lewis

SarahBM

I am 40 pages into a Man Called Ove. Not really getting into it. I think it may be one of those over hyped books that everyone seems to be gushing over this year. It's a short enough books so I think I will stick with it.
Any opinions?

ahlookit

Finished Set The Boy Free by Johnny Marr.

And onto a book by another legend, Nomad by Alan Partridge (Aha!)